But Ihei Byakuya felt that things could not go on like this. He clearly intended to shake off Yoshimura Eto, this dangerous creature...
Yet when he looked at Eto holding the taiyaki and nibbling it in tiny bites like a little kitten, Byakuya's heart softened again.
Forget it...
It was only because there was no other way for now. Later, he would find some chance to shake her off.
Ihei Byakuya convinced himself of this.
...
A serving of taiyaki contained three pieces, and Yoshimura Eto finished all three.
Then she thanked Ihei Byakuya.
"Do you want another one? Or try something else? Eating the same thing over and over can get boring."
Ihei Byakuya asked.
"Mm... I want to eat that."
Yoshimura Eto gently tugged on Byakuya's hand, raising her other hand to point in a direction.
Perhaps influenced by the good food, she was no longer being so reserved this time.
"Candied fruit skewers? I'll buy one for you."
Ihei Byakuya immediately bought a skewer of candied fruit with sliced fruit pieces in the middle.
This was one of Japan's honey-glazed specialties, often stuffing candied fruit skewers with all kinds of fruits or even strange little ingredients.
After that, Byakuya took Eto to taste everything she wanted, until she was full.
Eto's sense of smell was just as sharp as a ghoul's, so she could always locate the source of delicious scents with great accuracy.
Although Byakuya paid for everything, he truly did not mind such a small expense.
Since ghoul investigators had the most dangerous job in this world, naturally the compensation was not low.
Not only did civil servants have various benefits, but the base pay was high, plus many bonuses.
Yet few investigators could be certain they would not be killed and eaten by ghouls the very next day. No matter how high the salary was, one needed to be alive to enjoy it.
"I'm so full..."
Yoshimura Eto's small belly was slightly rounded.
She had never eaten so comfortably in her life.
[Ding! The host allowed Yoshimura Eto to have a full meal. Reward obtained: 1 System Point!]
...Huh?
The sudden system notification in his mind surprised Ihei Byakuya.
This also counted for earning points?
Byakuya finally began to understand how the system rewarded things...
After enjoying the food, Yoshimura Eto slightly changed her opinion of this half-human brat.
But only slightly.
After all, he was ultimately a half-human serving the Washuu Clan. If her identity was exposed, he would immediately become an enemy, his blade pointed at her.
Yoshimura Eto had read her mother's diary countless times. She already knew all the Washuu secrets written in it and understood the rough circumstances of those half-humans from the branch families.
It could be said that the entire Washuu Clan and even the CCG were her enemies.
All of her suffering existed because of the Washuu Clan. Even now, they were still searching for her, dreaming of capturing her, and the Washuu Clan absolutely ruled over the CCG and those half-humans...
Thinking about this, Yoshimura Eto's eyes grew colder.
Perhaps she could spare this half-human brat's life on a good day, but nothing more.
To avenge her mother and to destroy the Washuu Clan, she would stop at nothing!
"Since you're full and satisfied, we should go buy clothes now."
At this moment, Ihei Byakuya's voice cut through her thoughts.
"Buy clothes...?"
For a moment, Yoshimura Eto did not react.
"Yes. You can't keep wearing that, can you? It's already so dirty."
Ihei Byakuya said directly.
"..."
Yoshimura Eto slowly lowered her head and looked at her own worn and tattered clothes.
If Byakuya had not mentioned it, she would not have even noticed this issue.
"Come on, let's go buy two sets of new clothes."
After that, Byakuya brought Eto to a clothing store.
This women's clothing shop had outfits for all age groups.
Ihei Byakuya, without hesitation, led Eto straight to the children's section.
"This... sir, may I help you with anything?"
Seeing such a young boy leading a small girl by the hand, the saleswoman's first reaction was that they might have gotten separated from their parents...
But since she couldn't be certain, she didn't dare assume anything, so she politely addressed him as "sir."
"I want to pick two sets of new clothes for her."
Ihei Byakuya pointed to Yoshimura Eto at his side.
"Little sister, how old are you?"
The saleswoman smiled at Eto and asked.
But Yoshimura Eto acted as if she hadn't heard anyone speaking to her, frowning slightly as she stared at the children's clothes in front of her.
"Little sister?"
The saleswoman asked again.
"I'm 18."
Yoshimura Eto finally responded.
But the response was something neither the saleswoman nor Ihei Byakuya expected.
"Eighteen...?"
The saleswoman was stunned.
This little girl did not look anywhere close to eighteen...
"..."
Ihei Byakuya had no idea what Yoshimura Eto was trying to pull.
After coming out of the 24th Ward, he had checked the time on purpose. It was indeed 14 years before the original timeline, and Yoshimura Eto was definitely 10 to twelve years old this year.
Although to be fair, even in the future at eighteen, Yoshimura Eto still didn't grow much taller, only reaching a maximum height of about 151 cm. And right now she didn't even look 140 cm...
The saleswoman could only look at Ihei Byakuya, as if asking him for help.
Byakuya shrugged. He didn't know what Eto was trying to do either.
"Just go along with what she wants."
Byakuya said to the saleswoman, not interfering further.
"I understand."
The saleswoman nodded, then brought Yoshimura Eto to another section to look at clothes.
Only then did Yoshimura Eto seem satisfied.
After looking through the options, she chose a warm coat and a long skirt.
Although she had a cute appearance, she did not seem to like cute styles of clothing. It looked like she preferred something more mature.
This might have been why she was unhappy about being taken to the children's section earlier, she probably felt the clothes there were too childish.
Once she finished choosing, Yoshimura Eto carried the new clothes and walked back to Ihei Byakuya.
"I... like this."
What she originally wanted to say was "I want this," but she felt that changing her wording made her behavior more like that of an ordinary human girl.
Besides, Yoshimura Eto actually had no idea what she was supposed to do next. She thought that once she picked the clothes, they would be bought immediately.
"Little sister, you can try the clothes on first to see if they fit before deciding whether to buy them."
The saleswoman reminded her.
"..."
Yoshimura Eto felt a moment of frustration.
She lacked basic knowledge of human society, and if she wasn't careful, she might expose herself.
"Um... I've never bought clothes before, so I don't know where to go to change..."
Yoshimura Eto intentionally made her expression look a little embarrassed.
This sentence was mainly for Byakuya to hear. If she acted secretive, it would only make things more suspicious. It was better to say it openly.
Besides, she really didn't know where she should go to change. She certainly couldn't just strip in front of Byakuya...